Pakistan the riskiest place to be born; Read to know why

Islamabad, February 20: According to a report by UNICEF, it is a risk to be born in Pakistan as one in 22 babies born there die before they turn one month old. UNICEF released a report on Tuesday examining the death rates of newborn babies during the first 28 days of life.

Japan is termed as the safest place to be born as less than one in 1,000 babies die by the time they complete a month, wherein India stands at 12 among 52 “lower-middle-income countries. Worldwide, 2.6 mn babies die within a month of birth every year.

After Pakistan next was the Central African Republic with 42.3 newborn deaths, followed by Afghanistan with 40 and Somalia with 38.8.

The countries with the lowest newborn mortality rates, after Japan, are mostly well-off countries with strong education and health care systems: Iceland (a one in 1,000 chance of death), Singapore (one in 909), Finland (one in 833), Estonia and Slovenia (both one in 769), Cyprus (one in 714) and Belarus, Luxembourg, Norway and South Korea (all with risks of one in 667).

The report says that more than 80 percent of newborn deaths included delivery complications or infectious diseases such as pneumonia. It says they could have been prevented with basic solutions such as affordable healthcare and well-trained medical staff.

UNICEF is launching a campaign aimed at reducing the disparity in life expectancy among newborns around the world, urging governments to step up efforts to improve medical and health services.